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Woman takes pole for Daytona 500

Daytona Beach, Florida

Danica Patrick poses for the media after she won the pole award for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Daytona 500. Photo: AFP

Danica Patrick became the first woman to secure pole position at a Sprint Cup race on Sunday when she was fastest in qualifying for the Daytona 500.

Australian Marcos Ambrose qualified 24th fastest with a 46.203-second lap in his Ford Fusion while Patrick covered the 2-mile (3.2187km) superspeedway in 45.817 seconds ahead of next Sunday's showdown - the premier race on the NASCAR calendar.

It was the biggest achievement of Patrick's four-year NASCAR career, going out eighth in the qualifying session and averaging a speed of 196.434 mph (316.13km/h).

The previous best female qualifier in a Cup race was Janet Guthrie who started ninth at Bristol and Talladega in 1977.

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Patrick's time was also the fastest pole lap at Daytona since Kenny Schrader's 196.515 mph lap in 1990, and the first time a rookie had claimed pole for America's Great Race since Jimmie Johnson in 2002.

"Hopefully, there are good things to come," Patrick said.

She waited about two hours as 37 fellow drivers tried to take her spot. Only four-time Cup champion Jeff Gordon even came close to knocking her off.

Gordon was the only other driver who topped 196 mph. He locked up the other guaranteed spot in next week's season-opening Daytona 500.

"It's great to be part of history," Gordon said. "I can say I was the fastest guy today."

The rest of the field will be set in duel qualifying races on Thursday.

However when the line-up unfolds, all drivers will line up behind Patrick's No.10 Chevrolet SS for "The Great American Race."

Four Chevrolet SS will start in the top five, with Patrick's Stewart-Haas teammates, Ryan Newman and Tony Stewart fourth and fifth.

"We say it's not really us, but she's got to do her part, too," team owner and fellow driver Tony Stewart said.

"She did a really good job. I'm proud of all of us."

Patrick has been the talk of Speedweeks. Not only did she open up about her budding romance with fellow Sprint Cup rookie Ricky Stenhouse Jr, but she was considered the front-runner for the pole after turning the fastest laps in practice on Saturday.

And she didn't disappoint.

The result surely felt good, especially considering the former IndyCar driver has mostly struggled in three NASCAR seasons. Her best finish in 10 Cup races is 17th, and she has one top-five in 58 starts in the second-tier Nationwide Series.